Ironing board supporting fixture



s. F. sLAwsKl 2,237,454

\ BOARD SUPPORTING FIXTURE Filed May 13, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet l April s, 1941. i

.IRONING April 8, 194- s. F. sLAwsKl 2.237.454

IRONING BOARD SUPPORTING FIIXTURE Filed May 13, 195e 2 sheets-sheet 2 E l mm f S f A fr V mm patented Apr. 8, 194.1

2,237,454 Ili-NKNG BOARD SUPPORTING FIXTURE Stephen F. Slawski, Los Angeles, Calif. Application May 13, 1938, Serial No. 207,735

(Cl. SS-IZS) Z Claims.

The present invention resides in the provision of a new and improved iixture for supporting an ironing board so that it may be swung from concealed and out-of-the-way position in a wall recess or cabinet, into position of use and vice versa, and also readily swung thruout a wide range of movement into various positions of use best suited to the space available and other conditions at hand.

An 4object of this invention is to provide a xture such as described, which readily lends itself to a strong, durable and efficient all-metal construction and affords a more secure and stable support for an ironing board and simplifies and reduces the cost of installation of the board.

Another object is to provide a simply constructed, inexpensive and easily applied means for pivotally mounting the iixture in a wall recess or cabinet without requiring the formation of grooves, slots or the use of special construction in wall recess or cabinet, said pivotal means being provided as a part of the fixture and affording a quick and easy detachment thereof without necessitating the dismantling of the wall structure or cabinet when it becomes necessary to replace said fixture.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a xture such as described, which will permit of the adjustment of the ironing board into and the clamping thereof in various positions of use thruout at least 180 degrees of arc, due to the location and construction of pivot means for attaching the board therewith land corelated structures in the fixture, and without appreciably increasing the bulk of the entire unit or necessitating the use of other than standard sized cabinets and wall structures, or sacrificing stability or strength, there being in fact an added stability as a result of said construction and arrangement.

The invention hereof further consists in the provision of a xture such as hereinbefore described, wherein the body thereof has the ironing board held thereon by a pivot means which is disposed between guide bars for a brace, which latter has an upper part slidably supported between said bars and said body and formed with an oiiset portion permitting sliding of said part past said pivot means, the said brace being made in one piece, and the said guide bars being so spaced apart and relatively positioned as to facilitate an easy insertion and removal of the brace and also provide for a bracing or steadying contact of said bars with said brace when the board is in position of use.

i I have shown inthe accompanying drawings a preferred form of ironing board supporting xture embodying my invention, subject however, to modification within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of my invention.

i permitted the board thruout 180 degrees of arc;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary bottom plan view of the board and fixture of this invention, as when the board is extended for use;

Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the complete iixture hereof as when removed from the board;

Fig. 6 is a sectionalview taken on the plane of line 6-6 of Fig. 4;

. Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on the plane of line l-l of Fig. 4, particularly showing how the offset in the brace clears the pivot means for the board;

. Figs. 8, 9, l0 and l1 are bottom plan views of the fixture showing the different positions of the parts hereof as necessary to assemble and disassemble the brace and body portion thereof.

The embodiment of the fixture of this invention shown in the accompanying drawings, generally comprises a body member A, a pivot means B for securing said member for swinging movement about a horizontal axis into and out of the usual wall recess or cabinet C, a pivot means D for securing to said member for movement on a vertical axis thru at least 180 degrees of arc, an ironing board E, a brace F pivoted to said cabinet and slidably connected with said body member, and a brace guiding and retaining means G embodied in the structure of said body member.

Preferably the body member A is formed as a cast iron skeleton frame somewhat longer than wide and characterized by a substantially an nular marginal member I embracing a co-planar V-shaped web 2 having a cross bar 3 located adjacent the center of the body member.

The pivot means B for pivotally securing the body member A of the iixture in the cabinet C comprises spaced lugs 4, 5, E and 'I formed integral with the member l at one end thereof and spaced apart so las to hold between them a shaft 8 secured in place by cotter pins or other removablev fastenings 9. The ends of the shaft 8 serve as trunnions and are seated in openings I0 in the side walls of the cabinet C, as shown in Fig. 7. Should it become necessary to remove the xture from the cabinet, this may be accomplished by removing the cotter pins 9 and sliding the shaft 8 endwise, whereby to disengage it and said body member without dismantling of the cabinet.

The pivot means D for securing the ironing board E to the body member A comprises a bolt II adapted to be counter-sunk in the ironing board and extending thru an opening I2 in the cross bar 3. The lower end of this bolt has a wing nut I3 mounted thereon, whereby the board may be clamped in the desired position, said nut engaging in a recess or countersink I4 formed in the under face of the bar 3, whereby a comparatively large and readily operable nut may be employed without appreciably increasing the thickness of the board and fixture unit. 'I'his pivot means is disposed nearer to the outer end of the body member than to the inner thereof, so that the board may be swung into different positions of use thruout at least 180 degrees of are, as indicated in Fig. 3.

The brace F is formed of a single bar or rod bent to an` inverted U-shape and defining side members I5 and a cross member I6. The lower ends of the side members I5 are provided with trunnions Il' adapted to be rotatably mounted in openings I8 in the side walls of the cabinet C,

whereas the cross member I6 is slidably engaged with the body member A.

The means G embodied in the structure of the body member A for guiding and retaining the brace F, primiarily consists of two laterally spaced bars I9 which, for the most part, Iare disposed in spaced relation to and below the plane of the lower side of the body member when the latter is in horizontal position. The ends of these bars are joined by web portions 20, as seen in Fig. 6, to the member I of the body A. The cross member I6 of brace F is slidably disposed between the bars I9 and the lower side of said body member, as particularly shown in Figs. 4 to 7,

inclusive, Inasmuch as the member I6 is movable past the pivot means B, and the lower end of the bolt II, as well as the wing nut I3 thereof extend below the plane of the cross member I6, the latter is provided centrally with a U-shaped ciiset portion 2| to permit of movement of the i member I6 past said pivot means as aforesaid, said offset portion clearing the wing nut, as will be apparent with reference to Figs. 6 and '7, during the sliding yof the cross. member I6.

To facilitate the assembling of the brace F i with the body member A, the bars I9 are converged towards the pivoted end of the body member, so as to be spaced apart at their inner ends a distance less than the space on member I6 between the offset 2| and either of the side members I5 of the brace. Thus disposed, the bars I9 form a V corresponding to but longer than the web 2, whereby said bars are laterally spaced from the corresponding bars of said web, to accommodate the movemgent of the brace when positioning it on the body member. To assemble the brace F with the body member A, the former is inserted, as shown in Fig. 8, and then brought around to position, as shown in Fig. 9, so that the converged ends of the bars I9 lie between the left hand member I5 and the offset 2 I. Next the brace is swung into the position shown in Fig. 10 in full lines, land then moved forwardly into the lposition shown in dotted lines, so as to dispose the offset 2l between the bars I9. Following this the brace is reversed and brought to the position shown in Fig. 11. These operations are carried out in the reverse order when it is necessary to detach the brace from the body member.

As shown in Figs. 6 and '7, when the board is in position of use, the brace is disposed in board supporting position with the member I6 thereof disposed adjacent the outer end of the body member A forwardly of the pivot means D. The body member A aifords -a stable support for the board and yet the pivot means D is positioned sufficiently well forwardly to provide for swinging movement of the board thru at least 180 degrees of arc into any position desired, depending upon the space available and the other conditions at hand.

When the board is swung upwardly into an out-of-the-way position, the member I6 of the brace F will move freely past the wing nut I3, due to the offset 2I of said member clearing said nut. This action also takes place when the board is lowered from concealed position into position of use.

Heretofore in` the art of foldable, swiveled ironing boards, in order to provide for a swivel movement of the board when in horizontal position and also provide for a sliding connection of the brace with the board or its supporting means, the swivel pivot was located at or adjacent the inner end of the path of travel of that portion of the brace slidably mounted on the board, so as to avoid interference with the sliding of the brace. This has proved objectionable in that it appreciably limited the range of swivel or swinging movement of the board. The present invention overcomes such objection in disposing the pivot at the desired point to afford movement thru 180 degrees of arc, while providing for a free sliding of the brace past the pivot.

It should be noted that when the board is in position of use, the outer end portions of the bars I9 are substantially engaged with the junctural portions of the members I6 and I5 of the brace, as shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6, whereby to provide stable supporting surfaces which will prevent a rocking or tilting movement of the board about a horizontal axis.

I claim:

l. An ironing board supporting iixture comprising a body member, means for connecting said body member with a supporting structure for movement from upright position into sub stantially horizontal position and vice versa, pivot means carried by said body member at a point closer to the outer than to the inner end thereof for securing an ironing board thereto for swinging movement about a vertical axis thruout substantially 180 degrees of arc, a brace having means at its lower end adapted for pivotal connection with said supporting structure and its upper end slidably engaged with said body member, laterally spaced bars xed to and spaced outward from one side of said body member for slid-ably retaining the upper end of said brace for movement forwardly and rearwardly past said pivot means, said bars being converged towards the pivoted end of said body member, said brace having the upper end thereof provided with an offset for aording clearance of the brace with respect to said pivot means.

2. An ironing board supporting xture comprising a body member, means for connecting said body member with an upright support for movement from upright position into substantially horizontal position and Vice versa, an ironing board, pivot means on said body member for securing the ironing board thereto and providing for swinging of the board about a vertical axis, an inverted U-shaped brace, trunnions on the free ends of said brace adapted for pivotal connection with said upright supporting structure, the member forming the upper end of said brace being slidably engaged with the under side of said body member for movement past said 10 pivot means, guide bars on said body member and spaced for the most part, outwardly from the plane of one side thereof to hold said upper 

